Born in Paris on eve of WWII; family moved to Montreal, then California late 1950s. Peddled flowers on street corners in Los Angeles. Started investing in real estate 1970s; expanded to financial services, oil, technology. Built mortgage lender Ameriquest by aggressively selling mortgages to homeowners unable to get traditional bank loans. Today company is nation's largest subprime mortgage provider. Tough times: rising interest, default rates hammering profits. In January paid $325 million to 49 states to settle predatory-lending charges. Closed 230 retail offices, fired 3,800 employees 5 months later. Big Bush supporter sworn in as ambassador to the Netherlands February; ceded control of Ameriquest to wife, Dawn. Also sold off stakes in Dutch brewer Heineken, oil conglomerate Royal Dutch Shell, Anglo-Dutch food retailer Unilever.

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